SINGAPORE: Watching the fruit juice vendor prepare that cup of apple juice leaves many in no doubt that it is full of nutritious goodness. Indeed, many in Singapore are turning to drinking fruit juices as a healthier alternative to soft drinks.
But tests CNA conducted with the help of experts at Temasek Polytechnic showed that juices are not necessarily the healthier choice. Whether fresh, cold-pressed or pre-packaged, they could contain as much if not more sugar than a can of soft drink. The tests showed that there is more sugar in a 300 ml cup of freshly prepared red apple juice compared to a 320 ml can of soft drink.
Lecturer from the School of Applied Science at Temasek Polytechnic Guo Ren designed and supervised the experiment done by two Year 2 students from the Applied Food Science and Nutrition course to quantify the amount of sugars present in freshly made fruit juices.
The juices of red apple, watermelon and orange as well as popular combinations of apple, beetroot and carrot, popular known as ABC; tomato, watermelon and lemon, as well as orange and ginger, were extracted into a 300ml cup with no ice added.
The amount of sugar, which includes naturally occurring ones, were measured with a refractometer for the experiment. These were the results.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EATING FRUIT AND DRINKING FRUIT JUICE
Dr Kalpana Bhaskaran, who heads the Centre for Applied Nutrition Services, said that nutritionally it is better to eat the actual fruit instead of drinking its juice, even if freshly prepared. This for reasons of quantity and quality.
She said the juicing process would strip away dietary fibres. Some of the vitamins and minerals present in whole fruits would also be lost.
And since more than one fruit would typically be needed to make a glass of juice, the amount of sugar in the juice will also be higher compared to eating a single fruit.
Dr Kalpana, who is also the vice-president of Diabetes Singapore, cautioned that people should be mindful of the amount of carbohydrates and sugar they are consuming,.
“We should not forget that fruit juices are a concentrated source of sugar. People are better off eating the fruit,” she said.That way, people won’t lose the fibre, they can control the calorie intake and can feel more full from chewing on the fruit.
Using a medium-sized red apple weighing 130g as an example, Dr Kalpana said eating it provides 15g of carbohydrates, mostly from naturally occurring sugars such as fructose, sucrose, and glucose. But based on the experiment, 40.2g of sugar could be consumed when drinking a 300ml cup of apple juice.
In fact, stripping the fibre off the fruits through the juicing process is not just bad for the bowels. The Health Promotion Board (HPB) said that fibre in fruits helps to slow the absorption of sugars into the bloodstream.
“Without the fibre, the large amount of sugar from fruit juices enters the bloodstream quickly and causes a sugar spike, similar to what happens when we drink sweetened drinks like sodas,” a spokesperson said.
Over time, this wears out the pancreas, which produces insulin, and can lead to weight gain and diabetes, she added.
“Many people may think that naturally occurring sugar is healthier than added sugar, but there is no chemical difference between the two, and they have the same impact on blood sugar level when ingested,” the HPB spokesperson said.
For this reason, HPB said that consuming fresh fruit juices is no different from drinking pre-packaged juices.
Making it worse, some shops add sugar to their freshly-prepared fruit juices, Dr Kalpana said. Sugar could go unnoticed, as it is dissolved in the water that is added. In fact, one of the shops CNA visited admitted to adding sugar to their fruit juices, as the drink would be “tasteless” otherwise.
IS COLD-PRESSED JUICE BETTER?
Cold-pressed juices have been gaining in popularity for being a “better option”. A special juicer is used to slowly pulverise the fruit to extract the juice while preserving as much of the nutrients as possible.
But HPB said when it comes to sugar content, they are no different from juices extracted through a normal juicer.
“As the pulp is left behind, it still loses the beneficial fibres that slows sugar absorption, improves digestive health and helps one feel fuller. Hence, cold-pressed juices have the same effect as conventionally extracted juices on blood sugar levels, weight gain and diabetes,” a spokesperson explained.
HPB also cited data from market research company Mintel to show that pre-packaged “100 per cent” fruit juice without added sugar had a similar amount of sugar to other juice drinks that do not have such labels.
The board recommended that consumers choose whole fruits over fruit juice and to limit fruit juices to no more than one glass a day. This is aligned to the World Health Organisation’s recommendations to limit the intake of sugar, the spokesperson added.
“To maintain a healthy weight and prevent diabetes, we should limit our intake of all types of sugars – both naturally occurring and added,” she said.
Dr Kalpana acknowledged that being out on a sunny day could leave one craving with the feel of a cold fruit juice hitting the throat.
“They can get a small portion, with ice, and specify for it to be made without sugar,” she said.
SINGAPORE: The tone in Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli’s speech on Wednesday (Jul 17) was unmistakable.
In outlining ongoing extreme weather events worldwide, both closer to home and across Europe and Asia, Mr Masagos said that “time is running out” in the world’s collective ability to avert the calamity that will come if current trends persist.
Last year, the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the pinnacle of global scientific research on climate, projected with “high confidence” that global warming is likely to reach 1.5 degrees Celsius between 2030 and 2052.
2030 is 11 years away.
The time has therefore come for clear-eyed assessments of what more must be done.
In the language of climate change, reducing carbon emissions, via policies aimed at renewables, energy efficiency, managing waste and the like, all have one aim in mind – mitigating projected increases in temperature, the concomitant sea level rises and frequency of extreme weather events.
These initiatives must continue with greater urgency, even for a country as small as Singapore, with minute contributions to global emissions.
In parallel, however, Mr Masagos’ emphasis on adaptation must also be taken as an opportunity to refocus on how we as a society must address the likelihood that the worst climate projections will slowly become reality. And in adapting to it, at what cost?
WHAT IS TO BE DONE IN ADAPTATION?
The Government has already put in place infrastructure initiatives such as ensuring that major projects such as the Tuas Port Terminal and Changi Airport Terminal 5 are built at higher levels above the sea. The Government will also further climate-proof its drainage system to the tune of S$400 million.
With fully one third of the country now sitting at less than 5m above mean sea levels, Mr Masagos announced that more will be done to study how to protect the rest of Singapore.
As Singapore looks even further ahead, three key issues stand out as the Government seeks to undertake these, and more substantial adaptation measures.
Artist impression of Tuas Port. (Courtesy: MPA)
First, the sheer long-term nature of the threat. Unlike other more unfortunate island states with far more immediate existential threats, Singapore does have the comfort of a slightly longer threat horizon. This, however, can be as much an incentive as a hindrance to immediate action.
As explained by Mr Masagos, for many measures, Singapore will need “to start implementing them now and continue over the next 30, 50 years or 100 years”.
For this, the Government must obtain buy-in today for contemporary and long-running investments, funded by current and past generations, which only future generations will likely benefit from.
Second, there is the size of the investments concerned. Here, Mr Masagos referenced the Netherlands, which already commits around 1 billion euros a year on flood protection and water supply.
And there is also the United States, where Mr Masagos said as much as US$400 billion may need to be spent between now and 2040 to defend its substantial coastlines.
For small island nations, the high cost of adaptation is an even more acute problem. In the face of rising sea levels, unlike larger countries, we have no option of retreat. It is only in building and adapting.
More specifically, as highlighted by the IPCC, the challenges are simply that with large up-front overhead costs, the cost of shoreline protection per capita can be substantially higher for a small island, as compared to a larger territory with a larger population.
A worker uses a lawn mover to cut bushes next to the financial district in Singapore on June 2, 2014. (Photo: AFP / Roslan Rahman)
The costs are therefore likely to be of an unprecedented scale for Singapore and Singaporeans.
Third, addressing the wide-ranging challenges of adaptation to climate change will require fundamental shifts in how governments structure themselves to better mainstream climate adaptation into overall urban planning.
In the case of Singapore, while the focus on water as a resource has rightfully been front and centre of past and ongoing Government efforts, an expanded whole-of-government approach to water may have to address not just its scarcity, but ironically, the impact that its over-abundance and unpredictability may have on our built environment.
In the famously low-lying and flood-prone Netherlands, one ministry – the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management – now oversees issues ranging from transport infrastructure, to the environment water management and climate adaptation.
WHAT ROLE FOR SINGAPOREANS?
Mr Masagos highlighted the role that Singaporeans can and must play in overcoming the challenges of climate change.
For example, he pointed to Singaporeans making climate-friendly choices when it comes to consumption patterns. Going forward, the Government will also convene Singaporeans to work together on the issue of recycling.
While laudable, these initiatives again centre on mitigation. Far more needs to be done to garner common understanding of the need to prepare for adaptation, and in particular the cost of doing so.
For now, Singapore has been fortunate that discussions on climate change have not suffered from the suspicion, denial, politicisation and polarisation that characterises debate in many western countries.
Environment Minister Masagos Zulkifli speaking at MEWR’s 2019 Partners for the Environment forum. (Photo: Matthew Mohan)
The reason is simply that in many of these countries, the cost of climate change mitigation (e.g. in shifting from more pollutive fossil fuels to cleaner renewable alternatives) has been inextricably linked to political questions of cost, economic restructuring, decline and job losses.
In Singapore, discussions on mitigation have been far simpler, focused as they are on the lower-hanging fruit of energy efficiency, recycling and waste reduction. As it stands, with first payments of Singapore’s new carbon tax expected in 2020, it remains to be seen what impact it will have on Singaporean consumers.
Discussions on the cost and financing of climate adaptation, however, are inevitable and will sharpen.
So what can be done now?
As a start, there has to be acceptance that there are no easy nor painless answers to climate adaptation.
For example, there are difficult discussions to be had on whether and how far past and current generations will have to bear the greater burden of financing the cost of adaptation for future generations of Singaporeans.
Relatedly, therefore, Singapore will do well to avoid the generational divide that often splits debate on climate change. Mobilising action for climate change must not be the sole domain of a younger, more activist generation.
Buy-in must involve all Singaporeans, particularly as the substantial cost and trade-offs to adaptation will ultimately have to be spread equitably between and within generations.
The climate challenge that confronts us is a crisis. Time indeed is running out, and all crises demand collective understanding first, before any meaningful action is possible.
BALUCHAR, BANGLADESH: When Mohd Yusof came up to speak to us out of the blue, my younger colleague Chiew Tong burst into hysterical laughter.
“I’m so shook,” she declared her excitement in typical Millennial speak.
By this time, we were halfway through our production trip in Bangladesh and had gotten used to curious locals approaching us with questions about where we were from and what we were doing.
What set Yusof apart from them was the accent.
We did not expect – at the end of a long day in a small riverside village 30km south of Dhaka – to suddenly get a dose of home from a man who looked typically Bangladeshi but spoke fluent Singlish, ah beng-style.
“I’ve worked in Singapore for almost ten years mah,” he explained, drawing another guffaw from Chiew Tong.
CNA Insider journalist Goh Chiew Tong in Baluchar, Bangladesh.
In retrospect, we should not have been surprised.
Baluchar, with a population of 100,000, may be a rural backwater, but one in three adult males here work abroad. And their top destination is – you guessed it – Singapore.
The CNA Insider team spoke to migrant workers who had returned home from the city-state where they built homes, cleaned the streets and cast metal parts in factories.
We wanted to know if years of toiling away in a foreign land had paid off for them; if their Singapore dreams were fulfilled.
The main shopping street in Baluchar, Bangladesh.
The reactions were mixed. Many spoke about incurring a large debt just to get to Singapore. We also collected stories of misadventures, lucky breaks, but never, surprisingly, regrets.
It would seem that for most Bangladeshis living in this rural village, so harsh is the reality of staying put that they would grasp at any chance of making it overseas, however high the stakes may be.
And whatever the outcome, when they return home, pieces of Singapore stay with them.
Here are the different ways the island nation has left its mark on Baluchar and its people.
WATCH: The Bangladeshi town with a Singapore dream (Dur 9:55)
INSPIRED BY FAIRPRICE
If the forklift hadn’t hit him, K M Salahuddin, wouldn’t be where he is today.
“The forklift driver was moving two boxes but he didn’t see me standing there. Then the iron containers fell on me,” recounted the 48-year-old who had worked in Singapore from 1994 to 2013, first in a shipyard, then a foundry.
The accident left him with a fractured leg, broken ribs and an extended stay in the hospital.
When he got out and resumed work, he could only do light duties for a few hours a day, earning way below his usual S$1,200 a month.
So against the wishes of his employers whom he said were “extremely nice” to him, he made the painful choice of ending his 20-year career in the Lion City.
K M Salahuddin showing CNA Insider his Singapore visa in his store.
“My daughter was sitting for her ‘O’ Levels, and my son was not getting the proper guidance to study. With these considerations in mind and my injuries, I decided to come back,” he said.
Life back in Baluchar was tough. Salahuddin didn’t have much savings because not only was he supporting his wife and three children, he also had to take care of his ailing parents and three siblings with disabilities.
Thankfully, a year later in 2014, he got a break. Under his company’s insurance scheme, Salahuddin collected S$40,000 in workplace injury claim.
And that was when he saw an opportunity to be his own boss.
“I thought that since there are no crockery and electronics stores in the village, maybe opening one would be a good idea,” he told CNA Insider.
And in designing the layout of the store, he drew inspiration from an iconic Singapore brand – NTUC Fairprice.
Crockery sets on display in Salahuddin’s ‘Sun Moon’ store.
In Bangladesh, goods are usually not on display in the shops. Instead, customers stand outside stores and ask for the items they want, which Salahuddin said he finds “very annoying”.
“But the Singaporean system is so beautiful. If I want to buy, I can open the goods and see. If not, it’s totally ok,” he recounted.
What is important is for (customers) to have an experience. This is what I learnt from Singapore.
Indeed, along the main shopping street in the dusty village, Salahuddin’s shop stands out for being brightly lit and welcoming. Customers can walk along the spacious aisles to admire the dinner sets and electrical appliances that are on full display on the shelves – much like supermarkets in Singapore.
The Singapore connection also extends to the store name “Sun Moon” – coined by Salahuddin’s former employers who used to ask after his twins by referring to them as his “sun and moon” rather than son and daughter.
“I thought if one day I have my own business, I would call it ‘Sun Moon’,” said Salahuddin whose store stays open from 7am till late.
“After working (in Singapore) for 20 years, you get into the habit of waking up at 5am and working all day. I still do that,” he said.
Salahuddin tending to a customer.
With the store being a big hit with the locals, moving about “ten rice cookers, four gas stoves, two to four water filters and 40 dinner sets” monthly, Salahuddin is ready to expand the business.
Of the circumstances that had led to his return, he said: “I don’t look back. Let bygones be bygones. Now I look to the future.”
THE DREAMER DROWNING IN DEBT
Unlike Salahuddin who turned his misfortune into a chance to capitalise on his experiences in Singapore, there are some who risked everything to seek fortunes abroad, only to end up in a worse position than before.
42-year-old Jamal is one of them.
Jamal showing CNA Insider his Singapore visa.
His brief stint in Singapore lasted only 20 months from May 1979 to December 1999. But two decades later, he is still paying off debt that had stemmed from that experience.
“I heard from my friends and relatives talk about how good Singapore is,” Jamal said. “People go there with hopes of owning a house and cars when they come back.”
Enticed by this dream of a better life, at the age of 22, Jamal tried to convince his parents to mortgage their home to raise the S$4,000 agent fee.
“I said no to him but he did not listen,” recalled Jamal’s mother, Sharifunnesa, now 60.
But eventually, she and her husband gave in to their son, after he started “screaming and arguing” with them. The father, a farmer, even had to borrow money from friends and relatives because the bank loan alone was not enough to cover the agent’s commission.
Jamal’s mother, Sharifunnesa, speaking to CNA Insider.
The first month Jamal was in Singapore, he did not work for even a day.
“(I was told) that they would give us a job immediately,” he said. Instead, for the next 19 months, he was given an irregular series of gigs in cleaning and construction, earning an average of S$14 a day.
“Another time, I went without work for 10 to 12 days.”
Jamal told us that he thought there was nothing unusual about the situation, because it happened to everybody he was staying with in the warehouse that was home to about 40 men who would sleep on the floor at night with just pillows.
On the days when they had nothing to do, they went to the parks.
“I had hope and I loved everything about Singapore,” Jamal said.
But that hope was dashed one day when his agent showed up and told everyone that “there was no more work to do”.
“They gave us back our passports and dropped us off at the airport. It felt really bad. I was under a lot of debt that I couldn’t repay. I cried a lot,” Jamal said.
Twenty years after working in Singapore, Jamal is still deep in debt.
When he arrived back in Baluchar without advance notice, Sharifunnesa was furious.
“I screamed at him,” she said. “We had no house, no roof. We sent him there with the hope of a better life. But all he would say was that he was back and there was nothing to be done.”
To repay the loans, Jamal borrowed more money to fund a hardware business and a private transportation venture. Both failed.
He is now anywhere from S$16,000 to $24,000 deep in debt, he reckoned.
Still, he said he has no regrets: “There are always two sides to every coin.”
Had I not gone, I would not be under this pile of debt. But if I didn’t go to Singapore, I would have missed out on the good stuff, too.
“I will take my kids to Singapore one day,” he said.
Jamal and his family in Baluchar, Bangladesh.
PINING FOR ONE MORE CHANCE
Jamal’s neighbour, Mohd Yusof, also thinks about Singapore with the same kind of affection.
In fact, the 33-year-old loves the Little Red Dot so much that he even speaks like a Singaporean. That was what caught our attention and amused Chiew Tong and myself so much when we were in Baluchar.
Yusof was a cleaner with Pasir Ris-Punggol town council from 2007 to 2016. When his Work Permit expired, he was sent home.
“The government said more than ten years cannot do, then our town council, even our company people also said, ‘Sorry brother, no choice you have to go back,’” said Yusof.
Mohd Yusof speaking to CNA Insider in Baluchar, Bangladesh.
At that time, a Work permit holder could stay in Singapore for only ten years. Although Yusof knew this rule, he thought that exceptions could be made given his good work performance.
“We liked to keep (the estate) clean because we knew that was the Singaporean standard,” he said.
As the estate cleaners’ supervisor, he was well-loved by the residents he served, saying that “they even invited me to birthday parties”.
“One of them also told me to meet up with him when I come back to Singapore next time,” he added.
From our conversation, it was clear that Yusof was not ready to move on from his dream of returning to Singapore.
Yusof playing with his son and other children in Baluchar, Bangladesh.
For the last three years, he has been living in limbo, trying again and again to get a job in another sector with no success.
“Singapore is constantly rejecting my visa for unknown reasons,” he said, showing us on his phone screenshots of the Manpower Ministry’s web page that employers use to check Work Permit application status.
“My documents are just not getting approved,” he lamented.
Yusof claimed there is no work to be had in his hometown, so for now, he is relying on what is left of his savings.
“When I worked in Singapore, I saved enough to buy a piece of land. So if I still can’t find a job, then I might need to sell the land next time,” he said.
His goal is to work in Singapore for another three to four years.
“I came back home suddenly, and I haven’t yet completed my dream. So I have made up my mind that I will go there again,” insisted Yusof.
Mohd Yusof (left) and his brother holding Yusof’s twins.
THE MAN WITH A PLAN
By contrast, when Shahidul Islam got sent home from Singapore prematurely by his agent without an explanation, he took it in his stride.
What makes the difference for him was having a clear direction and plan in mind.
Before heading to Singapore from Baluchar in 1999, he already had his own wood business that he wanted to expand and modernise. To do that, he needed to raise S$3,000.
“This was my plan, to earn more money and start a sawmill,” he said.
Back then, Shahidul had to cut wood for his clients by hand. Without machines, it was impossible to scale up the operation.
So at the age of 45, he left his family to move to Singapore to work in construction. The plan was to stay and earn for at least three years.
“It was very painful work and had to be done with a lot of risks,” he said.
Shahidul Islam showing CNA Insider his Singapore visa.
At his Jurong Island construction site where he sometimes worked till 9pm, he saw people “break their hands and legs”.
“If we fell down, then we would die,” he added.
However, he kept up morale because “the salary was good”. With overtime pay, he could earn up to S$10,000 to S$12,000 a year.
The biggest drawback, though, was being away from his two children who were aged 3 and 9 then.
“It felt bad,” Shahidul said. “I used to worry all the time about how the kids were doing.”
Making international calls was expensive, so Shahidul got through the tough times by writing and sending the children letters every fortnight.
In 2001, after two years in Singapore, Shahidul was told, abruptly, along with 60 other workers, that their contracts had been terminated. They had one week to pack up before being flown home.
Fortunately for him, he had already managed to save enough to buy more land in Baluchar.
The moment he got back, he started setting up the sawmill he wanted – one of only two in the area then – that has helped make life easier for many villagers.
“People do not have to go far away to cut their wood. Now they can easily get it from my shop to build their homes,” Shahidul told us with pride.
Shahidul working at his sawmill.
For all four migrant workers that CNA Insider spoke to in Baluchar, Singapore remains the land of opportunity that can help make their dreams come true.
But when forced to leave before they were ready, some were better prepared than others to face life after Singapore. They are the ones who had a plan.
Left grappling seem to be those who just cannot move on; who keep wishing for a second shot at the Singapore dream.
SINGAPORE: At an organisation for senior citizens in Taipei, about 1,600 volunteers provide support to its 300 staff to serve a total of 4,200 elderly folk.
This high level of volunteerism — one volunteer to three seniors — at HonDao Senior Citizens Welfare Foundation — can be attributed to its successful unique programme, known as the Time Dollar-Mutual Support, implemented since 2006.
The programme applies the concept of paying forward to offer one’s time in volunteer work, which entitles the volunteer to receive assistance back from the organisation later in the future, when he or she needs it.
For example, student volunteers can use the “time dollars” accumulated to ask for help in fixing computers and getting someone to give them a wake-up call.
Older volunteers can use their “time dollars” to learn how to make quilts or take part in “soul restorations”, which are traditional rituals aimed at helping those who have received a shock or encountered other disturbing situations to overcome their trauma.
This concept is slowly being introduced in more senior care centres in Taiwan.
This innovative initiative — something certainly worth exploring in Singapore — is just one of several admirable aspects of the senior-care model that a Singapore University of Social Sciences’ (SUSS) team came across during a study trip in Taiwan.
YOUTHS IN THE SENIOR CARE SECTOR
Another noticeable feature is the strong presence of young people serving in the nursing homes and dementia centres that the team visited, both as full-time staff and volunteers. At HonDao Senior Citizen Welfare Foundation, for example, the average age of a volunteer is 30.
File photo of a woman sitting at a table in a nursing home. (Photo: AFP/Tobias Schwarz)
The way education in senior care, gerontology and career pathways have been structured to groom and attract Taiwanese youth to serve in this sector explains much of this youthful presence in a senior care setting.
The universities provide gerontology degree courses to prepare students for work in the long-term care sector. The Ministries of Health and Education are also working towards introducing long-term care course in vocational schools.
Progression pathway are porous, allowing for one to start as a care worker to eventually become supervisors and leaders through experience, continuous learning and performance.
OPENING EARLIER
The youth element aside, some medical institutions such as Tzu Chi Hualien General Hospital are taking the concept of patient-centric care to a whole new level.
Knowing that seniors tend to wake up very early in the morning, the clinics at Tzu Chi start operating from 5am daily to serve their elderly patients. The lack of hospitals in Hualien also gives it more reason to operate early, and provide acute care for seniors at the time when they need it.
These early operating hours relieve the seniors from having to queue for a long time, since there are fewer other patients, and allow their caregivers to accompany them to the clinic, and then report for work with minimum disruption to their work routine.
Who would have thought that such a small tweak in the service hours could make a significant impact on the physical, social and even financial well-being of the seniors and their caregivers?
The staff’s willingness to go the extra mile for their patients may be linked to the fact that Tzu Chi trains its medical doctors and professional staff in the hospital university.
An elderly man walking with an umbrella for support. (Photo: Hester Tan)
GETTING TO KNOW THE DEPARTED
The university focuses not only on medical knowledge but also places much emphasis on moral values and the spirit to serve.
It has a strong curriculum to inculcate this service spirit through compulsory volunteer work, which includes overseas missions and integration with the community in the training of the medical doctors.
For example, trainee doctors will sometimes use donated bodies from the community for their training. Before operating on the cadaver, the trainees must first be familiarised with the dead person’s life story through interviews with his or her family members and friends.
After doctors have completed their training, a cremation ritual will be held for the departed. This extra ritual performed by the university lets trainee doctors show their appreciation for the deceased and his or her family.
Trainees will then share what they have learnt with family members, who will in turn give their feedback, encouraging these doctors to serve the community.
The whole process allows the community to be involved in this process, socially and emotionally, which in turn, helps trainee doctors grow compassion.
CARING FOR DEMENTIA PATIENTS’ CAREGIVERS
Another senior care centre Chung Gung Dementia Centre ensures the well-being of caregivers is not forgotten.
After all, being “caregiver-centric” is the centre’s philosophy, said its director, Dr Hsu Wen-Chuin. He pointed out that because dementia patients will not recover, “caregivers cannot fail”.
The centre’s programme involves interactions between dementia patients and caregivers, and educating caregivers on the progress of the disease to help them progressively accept and adapt to the dementia patient’s deterioration in health and behaviours.
The centre, which currently operates as a day-care centre, aims to engage dementia patients through art, music, reminiscence and light therapy.
Their therapy uses a special lamp that is brighter, is meant to stimulate natural light and does not have damaging ultraviolet rays, to help patients keep awake during the day so that they will sleep well at night. If the dementia patient sleeps well, then caregivers can also get a good night’s rest.
Chung Gung also pays attention to caregivers’ work schedules in the planning and coordination of the transportation of dementia patients to and from their homes. This attention to detail speaks volumes of the centre’s strong service orientation.
The various approaches and services offered by the institutions visited by the SUSS team point to one thing: The vital importance of software and “heartware” in any senior-care model, even as the hardware is undoubtedly important.
An elderly woman is being helped while walking on the road. (Photo: TODAY)
While Singapore and Taiwan are two very different societies, some aspects of the latter’s care models are certainly worth exploring to see if they can be adapted in the Singapore context.
There is also much more that Singapore can do to encourage interest in gerontology, a multi-disciplinary study on ageing, and develop educational pathways and career paths for gerontologists — which, in turn, may attract young people to join the senior-care sector to support the fast-ageing population.
Sng Hock Lin is a Gerontology PhD student at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS). With a Master of Gerontology from the university, he is also SUSS Gerontology Alumni Chairman.
SINGAPORE: Everyone can soon try their hand at urban farming at four of Thye Hua Kwan’s (THK) centres for the elderly.
Indoor spaces at its centres in Chong Pang, Bukit Batok East, Ang Mo Kio and Taman Jurong will be fitted with LED lights and PVC pipes to act as shelves by early September.
Called ‘Seeds of Love’, the project aims to promote mental wellness among seniors, and encourage interaction between the young and old.
It was launched at a THK National Day event on Saturday evening (Jul 20) attended by 1,500 seniors.
“I’m very happy. I want to grow the things we can eat, and share together with the seniors, said Mdm Maimunah Ibrahim, a beneficiary of THK Seniors Services@Taman Jurong.
Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Law and Minister for Home Affairs, said the initiative is meaningful.
“It’s not just the growing. They (the elderly) will also be interacting with younger people – and that creates bonds, and networks”, he added.
The organisation is also looking into holding farm tours and workshops for the elderly and volunteers.
Attendees at the Thye Hua Kwan event taking part in a mug marbling activity. (Photo: Melissa Goh)
More than 100 youths have already expressed interest in the project.
“It’s not something that youths always do. I think we get to learn from the elderly”, said 20-year-old volunteer Younice Kuan.
THK’s chairman, Mr Lee Kim Siang, said they hope to “cultivate passion amongst our seniors and eventually empower them to set up a Farmer’s Market”.
SINGAPORE: Singaporeans in Hong Kong have been advised to “stay away from large crowds” ahead of another protest in the city on Sunday (Jun 21) over a polarising extradition Bill.
On its website, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said a protest march is expected from Causeway Bay to Central, through Wanchai and Admiralty.
“Traffic and public transport disruptions in these areas are expected,” the ministry said, adding that Singaporeans should monitor local news and Hong Kong’s transport department’s special traffic news page for updates.
“The Consulate is closely monitoring the situation, and will update Singaporeans as appropriate,” MFA added.
MFA’s notice comes a day ahead of another mass protest planned against the Hong Kong government and its handling of the now-suspended extradition Bill that would have allowed people in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China for trial.
The city’s government said on its website that police will “implement crowd safety management measures and special traffic arrangements” to facilitate the march.
Police have also called for calm ahead of Sunday’s protest, where security is expected to be tight. Authorities have removed metal barriers – which activists have used to block roads during previous demonstrations – from areas around the march route.
PEACEFUL PROTESTS THAT TOOK A VIOLENT TURN
The notices from the authorities follow two peaceful-turned-violent protests last weekend.
Two initially peaceful protests degenerated into running skirmishes between baton-wielding riot police and activists, resulting in scores of injuries and more than 40 arrests.
Over 30 Hong Kong protesters who fear prosecution for their involvement in the ransacking of the finance hub’s legislature have arrived in Taiwan to seek shelter, local media said AFP/Anthony WALLACE
Police officers run as an umbrella is dropped by protesters during a clash inside a shopping arcade in Sha Tin of Hong Kong. (Photo: AFP/Philip Fong)
Those fights followed larger outbreaks of violence in central Hong Kong last month, when police forced back activists with tear gas, rubber bullets and bean-bag rounds.
Activists and human rights groups have called for an independent investigation into what they describe as excessive use of force by police.
A group of elderly people march to the government headquarters in Hong Kong on Jul 17, 2019, in the latest protest against a controversial extradition bill. (Photo: AFP/Anthony Wallace)
The protesters are also demanding the word “riot” be withdrawn from the government’s description of demonstrations and the unconditional release of those arrested.
What started as protests over the extradition Bill have now morphed into demands for greater democracy, the resignation of leader Carrie Lam, and even curbing the number of mainland Chinese tourists to Hong Kong.
Under the terms of the handover from Britain in 1997, Hong Kong was allowed to retain extensive freedoms not enjoyed on the mainland under a “one country, two systems” formula, including an independent judiciary and right to protest.
But for many Hong Kong residents, the extradition Bill is the latest step in a relentless march toward mainland control.
Opponents of the extradition Bill fear it would leave Hong Kong people at the mercy of Chinese courts, where human rights are not guaranteed, and have voiced concerns over the city’s much-cherished rule of law.
SINGAPORE: Almost 18 years to the day Ole Gunnar Solskjaer nodded home Manchester United’s opener in front of an adoring Kallang crowd, the baby-faced assassin was back in town and gunning for another pre-season victory.
While there would be no 8-1 romp against a Singapore Select side and he would be in the dugout rather than on the pitch, some things still hadn’t changed for Solskjaer.
After all, the stakes stayed small, the weather remained warm, and Red Devils continued to be red-hot on and off the pitch.
From the enthusiastic die-hards screaming at the team’s hotel upon their arrival to the fickle fair-weather ones baying for blood during the season gone by, all were present and accounted for as Manchester United beat Inter Milan 1-0 on Saturday (20 July), courtesy of a Mason Greenwood goal.
Not only did the Red Devils edge the Nerazzurri, they set a new Singapore Sports Hub record attendance of 52,892.
The previous record for a football match? An impressive 52,107 when rivals Arsenal beat Everton 3-1 in 2015.
In a stadium more used to seeing swathes of red empty seats rather than red football kits, Manchester United’s fanatical following meant that more than an hour before kick-off, the cavernous Sports Hub began to fill.
Manchester United jerseys, Singapore jerseys, and even a brave, confused duo in Liverpool T-shirts and Red Devils scarves, the allegiances were mixed but the motivations were the same – to catch the likes of David De Gea, Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford in action.
Manchester United fans packed the Sports Hub for their match against Inter Milan for the International Champions Cup on Jul 20, 2019. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
They swarmed the nearby Kallang Wave Mall like ants, circumnavigated the stadium like troops, and queued outside its gates like Singaporeans.
The swirling transfer rumours added to the intrigue: Would Romelu Lukaku swapping his kit for his opponents’? Could Paul Pogba be engineering a move away?
With new signings Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James also likely to play a part in the game, there was an undeniable buzz in the air;
The mere sight of the lanky Michael Carrick striding out onto the turf pre-warm up elicited warm cheers.
Manchester United fans packed the Sports Hub for their match against Inter Milan for the International Champions Cup on Jul 20, 2019. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
Inter’s arrival wasn’t met with such joy though, with lusty boos ringing from the stands – a sliver of blue wasn’t enough to drown out the partisan Singapore crowd.
Even legendary Brazilian goalkeeper Julio Cesar bore the wrath of some, after proudly declaring pitchside he hoped Inter – his former side – would win.
With Solskjaer starting a strong side, it was the Red Devils’ duo of Pogba and Nemanja Matic dictating the tempo right from the beginning, teasing and toying, spraying passes to stretch the Inter backline.
But Antonio Conte’s rearguard held firm, as neither side failed to register a notable shot on target after 15 minutes.
Manchester United fans packed the Sports Hub for their match against Inter Milan for the International Champions Cup on Jul 20, 2019. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
That came 10 minutes later, as a dipping Rashford shot was easily saved as eager cries of ‘Shoot!’ rang out.
An adventurous foray forward by fullback Luke Shaw was the closest Man U would come in the first 30 minutes, but his fizzing ball across was met by nothing but groans from the local fans.
As fireworks from the National Day Parade rehearsal painted the distant cityscape, the Red Devils attempted to ignite some of their own sparks on the pitch.
First, pacy James came close in the 36th minute but could only screw his shot wide. Four minutes later, a Samir Handanovic save kept Inter in the tie as he denied Anthony Martial.
There was even time for off-pitch action at half-time, as a proposal in the stands drew loud cheers from the crowd – the couple were Manchester United fans of course.
A searing start to the second half saw Man United come agonisingly close – first through a Matic header off the bar, then a toe-poked Pogba shot pushed away by Handanovic.
With Solskjaer changing his whole squad with 30 minutes left to play, there was one particular change greeted by boos – Ashley Young.
But the veteran didn’t let that faze him and proved a point several minutes later by turning provider for fellow substitute Mason Greenwood.
Young’s inswinging freekick from the wing was only parried into the path of the youngster, and he finished with deft aplomb.
The new-look Red Devils continued to press and shaggy-haired Tahith Chong was the catalyst. His slick dribbling and exquisite passing causing Inter – in particular centre-back Martin Skrinar, a number of problems.
The shrill blast of the final whistle brought a final round of raucous applause as the game came to a close – it might have been friendly in name, but to the partisan Singapore crowd, it was clearly anything but.
SINGAPORE: Every Saturday, in the lead-up to the National Day Parade, about 170 vehicles from Singapore’s uniformed forces are stationed in the ‘Mobile Column Village’, located just off Nicoll Highway.
It’s where they are prepped to make sure their 15 minutes of fame as part of the NDP’s mobile column goes without a hitch.
This Saturday (Jul 20), reporters followed three newly commissioned made-in-Singapore Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFV) from Sungei Gedong Camp to the Mobile Column Village.
Here is a glimpse at the operations behind making this segment as flawless as possible.
A PRE-DAWN OPERATION
The task of transporting the Hunters begin in the cold and silence of an empty parade square at Sungei Gedong Camp in Lim Chu Kang.
At about 5am, three Hunters file out from their shed adjacent to the parade square.
Soldiers from within the hatches manoeuvre the Singapore Armed Forces’ (SAF) first fully digitalised armoured vehicle to line up behind three low-loading lorries.
A Singapore Armed Forces personnel guides the Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicle in Sungei Gedong Camp onto a low-loading lorry (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
One by one, under the guidance of a vehicle commander, the Hunters mount the lorries.
Captain Charles Loh, Vehicle Commander of the Hunter AFV said: “Performing the mount is the toughest part of the task as it requires driving the vehicle with great precision.”
He added that loading the Hunter in the dark made the operation harder.
Once secure, the Hunters begin their journey to Nicoll Highway at around 6am.
A Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicle loaded onto a lorry leaving Sungei Gedong Camp for Nicoll Highway. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
A HUNTER’S JOURNEY
The hour-long ride to Nicoll Highway starts at the dark and forested Sungei Gedong Road and Lim Chu Kang Road.
The three lorries are behemoths, dwarfing other vehicles as they make their way onto the Pan-Island Expressway.
When the slow-moving lorries make a turn, riders on motorcycles are forced to slow down while waiting for them to clear a bend. Once cleared, the motorcycles dart away.
A Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicle on a lorry travelling down Keppel Viaduct at daybreak. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
As the Hunters cruise over Keppel Viaduct, the sky begins to brighten and change in hue. Turning into Central Boulevard, skyscrapers tower over the roads.
The Hunters ride past Marina Bay Sands, the Singapore Flyer and the F1 Grandstand before dismounting the lorries to join other armoured vehicles at the Mobile Column Village.
Also parked there were SAF vehicles such as the Leopard 2SG Main Battle Tank, the ASTER-30 Missile System. They will be joined by more hardware from the Singapore Police Force and the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
A Singapore Armed Forces personnel guides the Hunter Armoured Fighting Vehicle at the Mobile Column Village. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
THE MOBILE COLUMN VILLAGE
By the time the Hunters arrive at the Mobile Column Village, the area is bustling with SAF personnel in their green overalls.
They have been here since just after sunrise. Some are having breakfast and chatting with their friends before a long day of NDP rehearsal.
Singapore Armed Forces personnel resting at the Mobile Column Village. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
Many soldiers are perched on their armoured vehicles, conducting tests and doing final maintenance to make sure their vehicles are ready to be presented to the crowd at the NDP rehearsal show.
At least 1,000 people are involved in the mobile column segment alone.
A Singapore Armed Forces personnel carrying out maintenance on a Leopard 2SG Main Battle Tank. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
Singapore Armed Forces personnel at the Mobile Column Village. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
They have until 8am to finish the preparations for the show. Once they are out of the Mobile Column Village, all spanners are to be kept and no more adjustments can be made.
Once given the signal, the machines begin filing out of the Mobile Column Village, beginning with the Leopard 2SG Main Battle Tank which will lead the column as part of the Armours formation.
They will make their way to the edge of Republic Avenue just shy of Nicoll Highway. The remaining groups of armoured vehicles will then be queued with the help of officers doing traffic control.
A Singapore Armed Forces Personnel directing traffic coming out of the Mobile Column Village. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
Corporal Sum Wen Yong, who mans a traffic control post along Republic Avenue, said controlling traffic can get tricky in places when there are no road closures.
“There are commercial operations which still go on along this road. For example, the filter road into the Mobile Column Village is also the road the amphibious DUCKtours vehicles use to enter the water.”
LAST STOP BEFORE GETTING INTO FORMATION
Once lined up in a single file, the vehicles and their drivers wait for the clock to strike nine. This is when road closures at Nicoll Highway begin.
Until then, those whose vehicles are ready to move into formation take the chance to catch another break.
Singapore Armed Forces personnel resting before moving their vehicles into formation for the mobile column. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
By now, many of the soldiers have gotten used to the routine. They have been rehearsing for the mobile column along roads in Tuas since April before joining the rest of the NDP performers at the Padang in mid-June.
Singapore Armed Forces Personnel ready to move their vehicles into formation for the mobile column display. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
They would hide from the morning sun in the shadows of their vehicles until given the signal to make the next move. Then, the helmets are back on and into the vehicles they go, ready to put on a show for the nation.
This year is the mobile column’s 50th instalment since its debut at the Padang in 1969. To commemorate this anniversary, the mobile column will make its way through the heartlands on Aug 10 for the public have a closer look at the vehicles.
NDP spectators can also look forward to a special tribute to Merdeka Generation servicemen at the end of this year’s mobile column display.
The man was unconscious when taken to the hospital after the incident and “subsequently succumbed to his injuries”, the police said in a statement on Saturday (Jul 20).
“Police are investigating the unnatural death,” the authority said.
It was previously reported that three people were injured after a 26th-floor Bukit Batok flat caught fire in the early hours of Thursday.
About 70 residents of Block 293D Bukit Batok Street 21 were evacuated during the fire, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) on Thursday.
About 70 residents were evacuated during the fire at Block 293D, Bukit Batok Street 21. (Photo: Facebook/Murali Pillai)
A man and a woman were rescued from the burning flat, SCDF added.
The man was taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, while the woman was taken to Singapore General Hospital for smoke inhalation.
The cause of the fire has not been identified by the authorities, although Mr Murali Pillai, the Member of Parliament for the area, said it has been traced to two e-scooters.
SINGAPORE: From Aug 1, those who wish to apply for a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) will be able to do so more quickly, under new changes announced on Saturday (Jul 20).
An LPA allows an appointed person to make medical and financial decisions on another person’s behalf should they lose mental capacity.
As part of the new changes, the mandatory waiting period before an LPA can be registered will be halved from the current six weeks to three.
“This reduces the overall time required to make an LPA, but it is also sufficiently long for relevant parties to be informed that an LPA has been filed, and to withdraw it if necessary,” said Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee.
Mr Lee, who is also Second Minister for National Development, was speaking at a fundraising event for caregivers of people with dementia organised by the Alzheimer’s Disease Association, during which he encouraged more people to make an LPA.
Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee speaks during an Alzheimer’s Disease Association event on Jul 20, 2019. (Photo: Vanessa Lim)
As of June this year, 67,000 Singaporeans have registered for an LPA.
Currently, one in 10 people aged 60 and above in Singapore has dementia, which translates to an estimated 82,000 people, according to the Institute of Mental Health.
However, this number is expected to exceed 100,000 by 2030.
In view of this, Mr Lee said more needs to be done to support people with dementia as well as their caregivers.
He pointed out that it can be difficult for a family when a family member has been diagnosed with dementia, but has not made an LPA.
“In such cases, family members need to apply to the court to be appointed as a ‘Deputy’, which would allow them to make important decisions on behalf of their loved one,” he said.
This process can sometimes be long-drawn and complicated, and many family members are also unsure of their duties after being appointed as Deputies, said Mr Lee.
As such, the Government has been working to improve support for caregivers and family members, he said.
He highlighted the Committee to Review and Enhance Reforms in the Family Justice System (RERF Committee), set up in November 2017.
Made up of representatives from the Ministry of Social and Family Development, the Ministry of Law, Family Justice Courts, social sector leaders and family lawyers, the committee was set up to review and enhance reforms in the family justice system.
It has made several recommendations, including simplifying the Deputyship application process as well as increasing support for deputies, for example through more accessible training.
The committee will conduct a public consultation exercise to seek views from stakeholders soon, said Mr Lee.
Welcoming Saturday’s announcement, the Alzheimer’s Disease Association said the changes would make the process of applying for an LPA easier.
“It (will) encourage more caregivers and family members to apply for an LPA in the face of medical decisions and assets management, allowing them to plan ahead and minimise uncertainty as they care for their loved ones,” said Mr Jason Foo, ADA’s Chief Executive Officer.
